Anita's Nut Roll.

Anita's Nut Roll

Barbara's former co-worker and very dear friend Anita who drove to Tahoe to visit and bring her Christmas wishes with the most wonderful Nut Roll.  What a fabulous friend!

Ingredients:

Soak a handful of raisins in hot water to plump

Chop 8 cups walnuts, set aside.

Mix and allow to proof:
1/4 cup warm milk
1 pkg yeast
1 teaspoon sugar

In a small bowl:
Whisk 3 egg yolks beaten (save egg whites for later use.) with
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon half and half, set aside

Measure in a large bowl:
4 1/2 cups flour 
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 sticks butter

                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Directions for dough;
Work 2  sticks softened butter into flour  into flour mixture:  Use hands to blend.  

Add proofed yeast mixture of yeast, sugar and milk, and mixed egg yolk, and half and half: mix well. 

then add to flour mixture creating the dough.

Knead about 10 minutes until all butter is well incorporated in dough.
Separate into 4 rounds of dough; allow to rest until double in size

Meanwhile mix: 
8 cups finely chopped walnuts
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla
Toss to coat well.

Drain raisins and pat dry.

When ready, roll dough thin to 12" X 18" rectangle on a lightly floured surface.                                                                         

Pat down firmly 2 cups of nut mixture to the ends of dough.   Next sprinkle a few handful of the plumped golden raisins which have 

been patted dry. Generously drizzle honey.  Begin to roll so that your finished roll is approximately 18" X 3".  Place seam side down on parchment paper lined baking sheet.  Check that the ends of each roll are sealed.

Brush top with whipped egg whites   Let set for one hour in a draft 

free space.   Bake at 325*F for 35 to 38 minutes.  When cool, dust with confectioners sugar.

Polish Poppyseed Roll ~ Makowiec

Polish Poppyseed Roll  ~  Makowiec

Ingredients:
Filling:
About 17 oz / 500 g of raw black or blue poppyseeds*
3 cups / 750 ml of boiling water
4 oz / 100 g of butter
1 cup / 250 g of sugar
4 tbs of honey
3/4 cup / 100 g raisins
1 cup / 100 g walnuts
Dough:
3/4 cup / 150 ml of warm milk
1/2 cup / 110 g of sugar
1 1/2 tbs of dry active yeast
3 1/2 cups / 500 g of all purpose flour
1 egg plus 2 yolks (large eggs)
2 oz / 50 g of butter
Pinch of salt
For glaze:
5 tbs / 55 of powdered sugar
2 tbs of lemon juice
1 tbs of hot water
3-5 tablespoons of orange peel or sliced almonds

Directions:
Place raisins in hot water (or rum, whiskey or brandy) and set aside to soak.

Warm milk slightly, add yeast and sugar and set aside in a warm spot for 10 min. Melt butter and set aside to cool slightly.

To make dough, place flour in a mixing bowl. Whisk egg with egg yolks and add to flour. Add milk/sugar/yeast mixture and start combining. Add melted butter and work to combine all ingredients. Add a few tablespoons of milk if dough is too dry. Dough should have consistency of play-dough - not sticky but playable. Once a dough ball is formed, cover and set aside in a warm place for at least 1 hour.

To make filling, place poppyseeds in a pot, add boiling water and soak for 10 min, then boil for 20-25 min. Add a bit more water if they get dry, enough to cover. Drain well. Once it cools slightly you will have to put it through a meat grinder with the fine grinding plate - TWICE.

In a large skillet or a pot heat butter, add poppyseeds, sugar, honey, drained raisins and mix well. Heat through and mix until sugar is dissolved. Add crushed walnuts and mix. Set aside to cool. Whip egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff. Add to poppyseed mixture and fold in gently.

Once the dough rises, divide in half. Roll out each half into a rectangular shape (30 cm x 25 cm / 12 in x 9 in). Place rolled out dough onto parchment paper large enough to go around your roll twice. Place half of the filling on the first rectangle leaving a bit of space on each side(** see pictures below). Roll starting from the shorter side, pinch the ends together as you go along. Wet the edge with water or egg white for better seal.

Once rolled, make sure to leave on parchment paper with the long seam down. Roll parchment paper around the poppyseed roll twice, leaving space for roll to "grow" (about 3/4 inch / 2 cm). Make sure the end of the paper is under the roll. Set aside in a warm place to rise for about 30-45 min.

Do the same with the second roll.

When ready to bake, heat oven to 350°F / 180°C. Place in hot oven and bake for 40-50 min. Remove and cool.

To make glaze, mix powdered sugar with lemon juice. Add hot water teaspoon at a time and whisk to combine. It should make a thick paste. If it comes out too watery, add more powdered sugar. Spoon onto each roll. Sprinkle with orange peel or almond shavings. Let set.

Prep time, 1 1/2 hr.   Cook Time, 45 to 50 minutes   Yield, 2 twelve inch rolls.

NOTES  Slice at an angle to serve.